Indian Premier League has been a platform from where a young player can showcase his talent to the world and get noticed by the selectors. There have been a lot of players who have got picked in their national team on the basis of their IPL performances.

IPL is a big stage to perform because the whole world watches it and there is hardly a performance that goes unnoticed because of the hype that surrounds this cash-rich tournament. But, if a good performance is noticed, bad performance also draws a lot of attention. If players are picked because of their performance in IPL, there have been instances when a player has been dropped from the national team on the basis of his performance in IPL.

T20 world cup is not that far off and Indian selectors will be keeping an eye on the way some players have been performing in the completion.

Let’s have a look at some of the Indian players who were picked in the squad against South Africa for a one-off T20 match and who have not been having a great time in the tournament. These players might just face the axe from the selectors.

Yusuf Pathan (Kolkata Knight Riders): He made a comeback into the Indian squad for the match against South Africa. Pathan has been a prolific run-scorer in IPLs and he would have been looking to cement his place in the side by scoring some big numbers in IPL. But all has gone wrong for him in IPL-5. He has struggled in the tournament and has played ordinary to say the least. He has scored 138 runs at an average of 15 and at a disastrous strike rate of 101. Pathan will be very lucky if he will make the cut in the Indian side.

Rahul Sharma (Pune Warriors): He was in the Indian squad though he was not in the playing eleven in the last international T20 match that India played. Rahul Sharma warmed the Indian bench for a long time and would have been desperate to prove a point through IPL, he has been ineffective in the tournament. Sharma came into the Indian squad because of his IPL performances and may lose the place because of the same reason. He was the number one spinner for Pune, but due to his inconsistent bowling has not played all the matches for them.

Robin Uthappa (Pune Warriors): He played in the match against South Africa and played an international match after a long gap. Uthappa would have known that his position was always in danger and would have liked to stamp his authority through IPL. But, he has failed to do so. He has played some good innings and has scored at a descent average but his strike rate has been below par. Uthappa has always been considered as an explosive batsman, but he has struggled to find the rhythm in IPL-5. With Sehwag looking at his devastating best, Uthappa might miss the team bus.

Vinay Kumar (Royal Challengers Bangalore): Vinay Kumar played in the match against South Africa and was very expensive. His contract surprised the entire nation and he would have been hoping to show the world that he is worth all that money, but he has failed to do so. He has been leaking runs and batsmen have always found him easy to negotiate in the tournament. His economy rate in the tournament is close to nine. There is a huge competition in the fast bowling department as Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Parwinder Awana and other doing pretty well. Vinay Kumar because of his recent performance might just lose his place.

By Gaurav Jha
Indian Sports News